Election time!

Election time!

I have now voted to throw the Tories out of Government. Theresa May and her Brexit buccaneers are wreaking economic havoc, harming the NHS in a crisis being ignored by Ministers, hitting children’s future with vicious education cuts, harming sick and disabled people by axing vital support, and damaging the fabric of our community with police cuts leaving crimes under-investigated and unsolved.

Theresa May has deceived voters. She claimed to oppose Brexit. She said she wouldn’t cut tax credit. She said she would not take any more from disabled people. She also said there would be no early election. Let’s not allow her to deceive us any longer. She is not fit to lead our country and has called the election early to try and avoid scrutiny over her Brexit plans that will cause havoc across the UK.

She wants an election now because she knows her best deal will leave Britain worse off. I have opposed Brexit at every stage – voting against triggering Article 50 and the Brexit Bill. I will continue to highlight the costs and consequences for the UK as the Tories try and deceive the public of the facts.

I welcome the opportunity to highlight and promote my record in Parliament and locally. I made a simple promise in 2015 – that I would never support anything at Westminster that would harm our community. In under two years I have helped thousands of local people with individual cases and problems as well as:

Won a commitment to build the new Rotherhithe Bridge from Mayor Sadiq Khan

Supported Millwall to prevent a development that put their future in London at risk

Campaigned to keep local post offices, pubs and community pharmacies open

Changed the law from Opposition to ensure terminally ill people get quicker support

I have kept my promise. I made that promise because my predecessor Lib Dem supported Tory policies in Coalition and harmed our community. The Lib Dems look set to choose Simon Hughes who, in Coalition with Cameron and Clegg:

voted for the bedroom tax eight times (hitting over 4,000 local people) and all of Iain Duncan Smith’s policies like the Universal Credit which is hitting people in Southwark now

undermined children and family’s access to justice by cutting legal aid

decimated the budget for affordable homes and attacked councils’ funding

tripled tuition fees hitting thousands of local students

did not support equal marriage.

I hope people remember his willingness to work for the Tories instead of fighting for local people.